


A Different Kind of Beginning

by Morgane (smilla840)



Series: New Beginnings [3]
Category: 24
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Post season 5 AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-14
Updated: 2012-07-14
Packaged: 2017-11-09 23:14:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/459552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smilla840/pseuds/Morgane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Winter is here.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Different Kind of Beginning

Winter came and with it the snow. Tony didn’t like it much. It was cold and wet and just… very cold. He liked heat better, the LA climate perfect to his taste. He could remember Michelle teasing him about it the one time she had convinced him to go skiing – an experience Tony had never been willing to repeat. 

Honestly, it wouldn’t have taken much for him to live indoors for the entire duration of the winter. Weren’t it for his lingering dislike for closed spaces – and Jack’s insistence that it would do him no good to stay cooped up inside all the time –, he probably would have. And let’s just say he now fully appreciated the efforts Jack had put in their fireplace.

As it was, Tony still cut down on his walks across the country. The weather could be treacherous, storms breaking loose without much notice. Considering that freezing to death wasn’t something he was looking forward to in the first place, and the way Jack had lost it the last time he had gone ‘missing’, he wasn’t willing to take the chance. 

That one time had been something of a turning point in their relationship, making Tony realize he had underestimated his place in Jack’s life. He would now catch the other man staring at him at times, for no reasons. He had never noticed before – was it new, or had Jack been doing it for a while? And more important, what did it mean? Oh, Tony wasn’t stupid, he knew what those looks meant. He just didn’t know what they meant when applied to him and Jack.

Tony knew what _he_ wanted, had known for the longest time, except he had never thought he would actually get it. At first there had been Michelle, and he had loved her so damn much it hurt. He hadn’t needed nor wanted anything else, and the fact that he had more than a passing attraction to Jack had never interfered with their relationship.

But what about Jack? Tony knew Jack cared about him as a friend, that Jack trusted him probably more than he did anyone else. Which meant a lot to him. He also knew Jack had probably been more affected by his ‘death’ than he had let on, his freak-out a few weeks ago proof enough of that. But what did Jack _want_? Was he missing Audrey, was he just lonely, looking for physical release, what? 

As no answer was forthcoming, Tony tried not to dwell on it too much – he would deal with it when the time came, if it ever did. Breaching the subject himself never came to his mind though – if he was wrong, things would get awkward and he would probably have to leave, and then Jack would be all alone, and that wasn’t an option. 

So they kept busy. They had grown better acquainted with their neighbours, their willingness to help out making them well liked in the small community. Not that the fact that they were two men living together hadn’t raised a few eyebrows at first, but the subject was politely avoided. It seemed that as long as Jack and Tony kept ‘it’ private, no one cared – or rather, people were willing to turn a blind eye on what they thought was happening.

Under other circumstances Tony would probably have found it amusing that people assumed he and Jack were a couple, hadn’t it hit so close to home. He had no idea what Jack thought of the whole thing, or if he had even noticed. Normally, Tony wouldn’t think anything could get past the other man, but then again, things weren’t exactly normal, were they?

It was thrown into sharp relief once more as Tony nodded at the cashier of the small supermarket, a young woman who winked at him and asked him how Jack was.

“He is fine,” Tony answered, smiling a little tightly through gritted teeth – that girl showed way too much interest in Jack, he thought –, and handed her the money.

“Alright then!” she said brightly. “You heard about the storm that’s coming, right?”

“Yeah, thanks.”

Coming back from town, he was glad he wouldn’t have to brave the roads again anytime soon – there was no point in being suicidal, after all. Already it was growing harder to see the road, the sky getting darker by the minute, though thankfully it wasn’t snowing yet.

Still, it was with relief that he reached their home, smoke raising lazily towards the sky, and Tony was already looking forward to warming up in front of the fire. But there was the food to unload and put away first – who knew how long they were going to be stuck inside.

“Jack?” he called out as he stepped into the house. “I’m back!”

Getting no answer, Tony shrugged. Jack was probably outside – though he would have appreciated some help with the groceries. It was growing colder and the wind was picking up. It would start snowing soon and Tony would rather not get caught in it.

He had already taken two trips back and forth between the house and the car when Jack appeared out of nowhere and jogged up to catch up with him.

“Give me a hand, will you?” Tony yelled to be heard over the wind, and Jack nodded, falling into steps with him.

Between the two of them, it didn’t take long to unload the bags. Sure enough, the snow started falling, more white piling on that already paving the ground. Tony shivered, closing the door of the truck, and looked over to Jack who had his head thrown back towards the sky, a delighted look on his face. For some unfathomable reason Jack liked the snow. Tony watched and shook his head with a faint smile. It was good to see Jack happy.

“Come on, it’s freezing,” he grumbled, moving towards the house. He was stopped, however, by Jack’s hand on his arm. Jack, who had a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. 

Uh-oh… 

Before he knew what had hit him, Tony found himself at the receiving end of a handful of snow. He sputtered, the cold wetness trailing down his face to his throat. Before he could react, another hit him straight on the chest.

“Jack!” he growled. “Stop…”

A third ball cut him short and his eyes narrowed. So, that was how Jack wanted to play it… Tony had never been one to back out of a challenge. He ducked, gathering ammunition at the same time – thank God he wore gloves! – and threw it back at Jack in one fluid movement. The startled gasp told him he had hit his target so he took cover and ‘reloaded’. Jack’s laugh was all the encouragement Tony needed.

They continued trading snowballs ‘til they were wet and shivering. And Tony would deny to his last breath that he had squealed like a ten year old girl when Jack had sneaked up on him and shoved snow down his back.

“Okay, okay,” Tony finally wheezed, out of breath from both running and laughing. “I give up. Come on, let’s get inside.”

Jack thankfully agreed – but then again, had he not, Tony would have dragged him into the house: his lips were turning blue and his teeth were chattering.

It was with a sigh of relief that Tony stepped inside and out of his soaked coat. Warmth infused him as he stood next to the earth, closing his eyes and feeling the chill be slowly driven away. 

A nudge from Jack had him turning around and he gratefully accepted the dry towel the other man handed him. Melting snowflakes caught his eye in Jack’s hair and he absently reached over and wiped them off before he could stop himself. 

When he realized what his hand was doing he froze, but it was Jack’s eyes that really gave him pause. Hesitantly, his hand drifted from Jack’s hair to his face, lightly tracing his features. He watched as Jack’s eyes drifted close with a sigh, a look of wonder crossing his face. Tony could feel his confidence building and his touch became surer, bolder. 

The towel laid discarded on the floor as he leaned forward, his eyes intent on Jack’s lips. Did he dare…? Resting his forehead against Jack’s, he drew in a breath in a futile attempt to calm his nerves and closed the final distance between them, brushing his lips against Jack’s.

The fleeting touch seemed to snap Jack out of his daze and Tony quickly found himself overwhelmed and breathless. Then there were hands and skin and heat, their clothes discarded next to them as everything span out of control, a control neither wanted to hold onto anymore anyway.

Outside, the snow kept falling.

It didn’t matter though. Tony wasn’t cold anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted at my livejournal.


End file.
